After several months of delay, the city Corporation's multi-level parking lot at its main office in Palayam has become operational, following the completion of a trial run.
The Corporation officials have now begun parking their vehicles in the parking lot. But, it will opened to the public only after the fixing of rates, although there are plans to open it for free temporarily to the public until the rates are fixed.
“It was handed over finally after test runs last week. The staff will be able to use the parking lot free of cost, but rates will have to be fixed for the public. It has to be fixed by the standing committee and later ratified in the council. We have an annual maintenance contract with the Tamil Nadu-based company, which constructed the parking lot. Kudumbashree will probably be handed over the responsibility of running it,” said a Corporation official.
The electrical inspectorate had issued a no objection certificate early in September after carrying out checks. The Fire Department had also issued an NOC. The multi-level parking lot had a formal inauguration in October last year, around a year after the construction works had started under the city Corporation’s Smart City projects. The structure of the parking lot inside the Corporation premises was completed by December 2019. But the work on the fire safety equipment and testing had remained pending. The opening of the parking lot was further delayed after the inspectorate said that fire exit stairs need to be added to the structure.
This also led to cost over-runs. Errors in the estimates prepared by the project consultant KITCO had led to a total cost escalation of more than ₹1 crore in the parking lot projects at Palayam and Putharikkandam.
Executed under the Union government’s Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT) scheme, the parking lot was completed at a cost of ₹5.64 crore. Out of this, 50% of the cost was borne by the city Corporation, 30% by the Central Government and 20% by the State Government.